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Free Web Research Link Closed Under Pressure From Pay Sites
from the good-or-bad? dept
Some interesting questions are raised by this Washington Post article about how the US Energy Department has shut down a free research website after being pressured by two similar commercial research services. Both of the services offer free search capabilities, as well, but also push people to pay for their research. The arguments on both sides make some sense. Those against closing it down fear that the commercial sites will now lock in their users, and eventually force them to pay. They also don't feel as comfortable with the search results. Those who support the closure think that the government is wasting money on a service the private sector is already providing.
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Easy
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Re: Easy
Looks like two options:
- shut down the free site, and get tax dollars from the commercial site and its employees
- shut down the commercial sites, and spend lots of money funding the free site.
It's all about the bucks, imho.
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Simple Answer
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